Zanu-PF's Dexter Nduna confirmed Chegutu West MP

Published: 19 October 2018 (172 Views)

The Electoral Court has dismissed with costs the electoral petition lodged by MDC Alliance candidate, Gift Konjana, for the Chegutu West constituency national assembly seat in the 2018 harmonised polls.

Konjana was seeking the invalidation of Dexter Nduna's victory in the 2018 polls.

In the ruling of the Electoral Court handed down by Justice Mary Zimba Dube, the petition lodged by Konjana did not meet the rules governing election petitions.

The petitioner sought an order setting aside the declaration by the Constituency Elections Officer of Dexter Nduna as the duly elected member of the national assembly for Chegutu West constituency in the harmonised elections held on 30 July 2018.

Additionally, the petitioner sought an order of the court declaring him the duly elected member of the national assembly for Chegutu West constituency.

Konjana also sought the Registrar of the Electoral Court to be directed to serve a copy of the order nullifying Nduna's victory to the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and the Clerk of Parliament of Zimbabwe and finally he sought for the respondents to bear the costs of the suit.

In her order, Justice Dube found the petition fatally defective in that it did not comply with the requirements of Rule 21.

She registered her misgivings at the failure by the applicant's lawyers to follow the rules of practice.

She added that the arrangement of the petition failed to meet the strict rules of procedure and therefore the court was left with no option but to dismiss the matter before delving into its merits as the court's residual power to condone infractions in electoral matters is curtailed.

The court dismissed the petition with costs and ordered the Registrar of the Electoral Court to serve a copy of the court order on the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and Clerk of the Parliament of Zimbabwe.